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    1. About Kidney Disease
      1. OVERVIEW
      2. Understanding Chronic Kidney Disease
      3. Kidney Disease Stages
      4. What Is a Nephrologist?
      5. What to Expect with CKD
      6. Kidney Disease Management
      7. Understanding Acute Kidney Injury
      8. How Kidneys Work
      9. Take a FREE CLASS on Kidney Disease
    2. Treatments
      1. OVERVIEW
      2. Dialysis Basics
      3. Benefits of Home Dialysis
      4. Home Peritoneal Dialysis
      5. Home Hemodialysis
      6. Sign up to Talk to a Home Dialysis Expert
      7. In-Center Hemodialysis
      8. Transplant
      9. Insurance & Managing Costs
      10. Choosing Not to Treat
    3. Life On Dialysis
      1. OVERVIEW
      2. Your Emotional Health While on Dialysis
      3. Staying Engaged
      4. Staying Healthy
      5. Dialysis Travel Services and Information
      6. Tips for Loved Ones
      7. PatientHub
    4. Recipes & Nutrition
      1. OVERVIEW
      2. Recipes
      3. Managing Your Diet
      4. Fluid Management on Dialysis
      5. Dialysis Diet Planning
      6. Cookbooks
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    Find a Dialysis Center

    Find a Dialysis Center

    Find a Dialysis Center
    Permission to detect location was denied Current location could not be determined
      Try a detailed search

      Need help? Call 1-888-373-1470

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      1. About Kidney Disease
        1. Understanding Chronic Kidney Disease
          1. Symptoms
          2. Risk Factors
          3. Causes
          4. Diagnosis and Testing
          5. GFR Calculator
        2. Kidney Disease Stages
          1. Stage 1
          2. Stage 2
          3. Stage 3
          4. Stage 4
          5. Stage 5
        3. What Is a Nephrologist?
        4. What to Expect with CKD
        5. Kidney Disease Management
          1. Kidney Diet Basics
          2. CKD Medications
          3. Your Kidney Care Team
          4. Diabetes
          5. High Blood Pressure
        6. Understanding Acute Kidney Injury
          1. Acute Kidney Injury Treatment and Recovery
        7. How Kidneys Work
        8. Take a FREE CLASS on Kidney Disease
      2. Treatments
        1. Dialysis Basics
          1. How Does a Hemodialysis Machine Work
          2. Starting Dialysis
          3. Types of Dialysis Access
          4. Your Care Plan
          5. Dialysis Medications
          6. Monitoring Your Lab Results
        2. Benefits of Home Dialysis
        3. Home Peritoneal Dialysis
          1. What to Expect
          2. Getting Prepared
          3. PD Access
          4. PD Training
          5. PD Monitoring
          6. Your Care Team
        4. Home Hemodialysis
          1. What to Expect
          2. Getting Prepared
          3. HD Training
          4. HD Monitoring
          5. Your Care Team
        5. Sign up to Talk to a Home Dialysis Expert
        6. In-Center Hemodialysis
          1. In-Center Treatment Options
          2. What to Expect
          3. Types of Vascular Access for Hemodialysis
          4. Your Care Team
          5. How to Choose a Center
        7. Transplant
          1. Finding a Kidney Donor
          2. Considering Kidney Donation
        8. Insurance & Managing Costs
          1. Understanding Medicare Coverage
          2. Understanding Medicare Advantage
          3. Understanding Employer Plans
        9. Choosing Not to Treat
      3. Life On Dialysis
        1. Your Emotional Health While on Dialysis
          1. Managing Your Emotions
          2. Talking About Dialysis
          3. Intimacy
          4. Body Image and Dialysis
          5. Building Your Dialysis Support Network
        2. Staying Engaged
          1. Tips for Working While on Dialysis
          2. In-Center Activities
          3. Hobbies
        3. Staying Healthy
          1. Managing Your Time on Dialysis
          2. Dialysis & Exercise
          3. Weight Management
          4. Avoiding Infection
          5. Managing Multiple Conditions
          6. Fighting the Flu
        4. Dialysis Travel Services and Information
        5. Tips for Loved Ones
          1. In-Center Hemodialysis
          2. At-Home Hemodialysis
          3. At-Home Peritoneal Dialysis
        6. PatientHub
      4. Recipes & Nutrition
        1. Recipes
        2. Managing Your Diet
          1. Eating Well on a CKD Diet
          2. Eating Well on a Dialysis Diet
          3. Salt and Kidney Disease
          4. Potassium and Kidney Disease
          5. Phosphorus and Kidney Disease
          6. Talking With Your Dietitian
        3. Fluid Management on Dialysis
        4. Dialysis Diet Planning
          1. Kidney-Friendly Shopping
          2. Eating Out
          3. Holiday Diet Tips
          4. A Chef’s Advice | Chef Aaron McCargo on Kidney Friendly Meals
        5. Cookbooks
      5. Thrive Central
        1. CKD
        2. Dialysis
        3. Diet & Nutrition
        4. Stories
        5. Wellness
        6. See All
      Dialysis Basics
      Dialysis Basics
      OVERVIEW How Does a Hemodialysis Machine Work Starting Dialysis Types of Dialysis Access Your Care Plan Dialysis Medications Monitoring Your Lab Results
      1. Home
      2. Treatments
      3. Dialysis Basics
      4. Monitoring Your Lab Results

      Monitoring Your Labs

      Share:
      At least once every month, your dialysis team will draw your blood for a series of lab tests. Your doctor will compare the results to those of previous tests to monitor your dialysis treatment and determine if any adjustments are necessary.

      Know Your Kidney Function Numbers

      Even if you’re not a “numbers” person, it’s important to have a basic understanding of your hemodialysis labs and kidney function numbers. This way, you can know if you’re meeting your goals or if there is anything you need to do to help improve your results.


      The top two indicators: Kt/V and URR

      While there are several tests that monitor your kidney function and overall health, Kt/V and URR are key ways to monitor the effectiveness of your dialysis treatment: 
      Kt/V

      Kt/V
      should be at least 1.2 or above—Kt/V stands for clearance multiplied by time divided by volume. This ratio allows your doctor to understand how well waste has been removed by your dialysis treatment.
      Fluid pouch icon
      URR should be at least 65%—URR stands for urea reduction ratio. It is a percentage based on how much blood urea nitrogen (BUN) was removed during a dialysis treatment. It indicates how effectively urea and other waste products have been removed from your blood.
      LEARN MORE ABOUT LAB TESTS FOR KIDNEY DISEASE

      When Kt/V and URR are low


      If your Kt/V and URR numbers are below the recommended levels, your doctor will adjust your dialysis treatment to improve waste removal from your blood by:

      • Checking to make sure you have good vascular access

      • Increasing the blood flow rate through the dialyzer 

      • Increasing the duration of dialysis—for example, if your treatments have been 3 hours in length, they may be increased to 4 hours 

      Find a Fresenius Hemodialysis Center

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      Your lab tests and what they track

      While Kt/V and URR are important, they’re not the only tests you need to know about.

      Below is a basic chart of common blood tests for people receiving dialysis. Your tests may be similar. The chart shows what the tests measure, but you should ask your nurse or doctor to explain your tests in more detail. And be sure to ask them what your lab test goals are. If you’re not meeting your goals, ask what you can do to improve your results.

      Know your labs

      Lab Tests: Dialysis Treatment Heart Health Bone Health Nutrition
        What the test measures
      Kt/V      
      URR      
      Hemoglobin (hgb)      
      Potassium (K)    
      Albumin      
      Phosphorus  
      Parathyroid    
      Calcium    

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